A chance to provide property tax relief and increase aid to schools went up in smoke Wednesday night when a $1.8 billion bill was voted down by the Wisconsin State Senate.
All 15 Democrats and three Republicans voted against the measure, which included a 50% reimbursement rate for special education funding, an additional $50 million in property tax relief, the elimination of income taxes on cash tips and overtime pay, and $600 million in rebate checks that could have reached mailboxes by this fall.
Gov. Tony Evers and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu pointed the finger at Democrats for stopping the compromise from passing.
“Wisconsin’s kids and schools aren’t going to get the investments they desperately need this year because Tom Tiffany and a few Republican and Democratic lawmakers chose to blow up a bipartisan plan to invest in our K-12 schools, lower property taxes and help working families afford rising costs, all because they’d rather do what’s best for the next election than what’s right for the people of our state,” Evers said.
LeMahieu added, “Senate Democrats stood together to buck their own governor to deny working families tax relief and leave $2.5 billion sitting in a Madison bank account instead of helping schools perform special education services.”
Tiffany, a Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor, said more of the surplus should go back to taxpayers, while Democratic leaders such as fellow gubernatorial candidate Kelda Roys said the deal could turn a surplus into a deficit.
State Sen. Andre Jacque, who voted yes to the bill, said the final tally was disappointing. He is not sure what the future has in store, but he hopes the Wisconsin Legistlature can reach a compromise with the Evers Administration yet this year.
Earlier this week, Rep. Joel Kitchens said the bill was good news for local school districts that have had to pay a larger share of special education costs, which can be a drain on general education funds. He added that the Gibraltar, Sevastopol and Washington Island school districts would have received state funding for the first time in years.
There is no indication whether a new effort to accomplish many of the same goals will take place.
